Welcome to Maryland!!!

I am not near you but I know that most nurseries will do it for you. I think that it is nice that you are considering a native tree (redbud) for you yard.

You may want to consider a dogwood. They are so lovely!

River birches are nice too though a little bigger. They are pretty fast growing.

How big is your lot? I know you said you want a small tree but if you have the room I highly recommend planting an oak if you can.

We have a 100' and 70' white oak trees and one 70' willow oak (I am just guessing the size really) but they are so stunning! I do live in a neighborhood with many mature trees so it fits in. You may want to look around and see what you neighbors have and decide if you want something that will bend in or stand out.

Here is a link that might be useful: maryland native trees and shrubs

See if you can locate one of the assistant or trainee managers at Meadows Farms without the boss around. Ask him or her if anyone there would be willing to plant the tree for you. Some of them are happy to do it as a personal side job in their free time. If they don't have a personal truck large enough, Meadows can deliver the tree for a reasonable fee based on the distance from your home.

Thanks for the suggestions!

faerieannette - we live in a neighborhood with many mature trees too. In our back yard we have 6 huge oak trees (I can't even take a guess as to how tall they are!)

Our lot is 5500 square feet and our house is fairly small, so we don't want something that will completely overwhelm it.

Here is a BEFORE shot with the trees (they look better in the picture than they did in real life):

Here is an AFTER shot without the trees:

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We also would like to revitalize the beds in front of the house. We are planning to plant the tree on the left side of the house (but further from the house than the cedar). We have powerlines on the right side, and we are thinking about planting a chinese snowball as the focal point on that side.

Stadler Nursery will deliver and plant trees - they have free delivery and planting twice a year - see link for more info. I've never used this service, but I've bought perennials and shrubs from Stadler Nursery and they've always done well.

Juliet

Here is a link that might be useful: Stader Nursery

I posted a link about this one before. I almost donated a holly to these guys but it didnt work out. ( I cut it down! I hate hollys!!!!) Anyway, I don't know how much they are but they are expensive but you get a mature tree! If I were to spend $1,000 or more I would want a big tree. lol. My budget as the 4 dollar dogwoods on ebay. :-) they were like little sticks. but they are growing...

http://acetreemoversnet.verizonsupersite.com/home/

Hi,
I have a friend who's worked at Behnkes and Homestead gardens and he plants trees as kind of a weekend side business. If you still need someone to plant trees and/ or shrubs let me know.

-Jimmy

Wish I were closer. I would plant them for you. Consider some of the narrow, columnar forms of trees (usually have fastigiata associated with their name) or sometimes not. There are certain varieties of ornamental pears (e.g. Cleveland Select, Chanticleer, Redspire, NOT BRADFORD) that grow upright and narrow. Also, there are some maples that are nice narrow forms. One I planted is Armstrong or Armstrong II maple. If you plant a dogwood, go with the Chinese or Kousa dogwood or their hybrids (e.g., Stellar Pink, etc.) You have nice potential there for your foundation plantings. Does the plan include landscaping the bank? P.S. I'm not a pro just a hobbyist when it comes to gardening and landscaping.

Two great nurseries in your area are:

Merrifield Gardens (Virginia) but by Merrifield, NO VA

and Carroll Gardens. That's in MD, I just forget where. But since their business is making money, they might come out to Silver Spring.

Carroll Gardens is in Westminster, a few miles down the road from me!

A few comments to consider:

(1) I have visited most of these nurseries and would recommend Merrifield Gardens, south of Tysons Corner VA, followed by Behnkes (two locations, Potomac and Beltsville nurseries are about equally distant from Silver Spring), for a large selection of high-quality, well grown trees (and shrubs, perennials, ...), including many native species and less common varieties. Stadler in Laytonsville MD is good for trees also, but has a smaller selection than Merrifield or Behnkes. In my opinion, Meadow Farms isn't one of the best.

(2) You didn't say when you intend to plant; I strongly recommend delaying until after September 15. Midsummer is the worst season to plant trees in this region; at the minimum, you will waste a lot of water to keep the roots moist in the summer heat. Early to mid fall is the best season.

(3) Selection of trees:

I agree that if you choose a dogwood, it should be a variety of the Asian dogwood (Cornus kousa) or one of the "Rutgers" hybrids between North American and Asian (technically, Cornus florida x kousa), because unfortunately the American species (Cornus florida) is susceptible to a fatal blight, especially when stressed by heat. American dogwood does best as an "understory" tree with larger trees all around - its natural habitat.

Redbud, the "straight" species Cercis canandensis, is an excellent choice, especially if you like purple flowers (in April), and generally problem-free.

Not sure what a "Chinese snowball" is (I've heard of "snowball" viburnum). But Japanese snowbell (Styrax japonica) and a closely related species, fragrant snowbell (Styrax obassia) are fine ornamentals with showy white flowers in early summer.

A deciduous flowering magnolia, such as star magnolia (Magnolia stellata) is still another good choice for a smaller tree with very showy flowers.

I don't see a reason to use a narrow upright, or "fastigiate" tree, in your yard. I think a smaller tree with mature height in range 20-30 feet and spread similar to height, that will provide some shade without "overwhelming" the house, is a better and more attractive choice for the location shown in the photos. All of the trees that I just mentioned are in this size category.

Finally, I hope you will decide NOT to plant any "ornamental" pear, such as Cleveland Select, Chanticleer, Redspire, Bradford. All the "ornamental" pears are cultivars of one species, Pyrus calleryana (place of origin southwest Asia) that has become a serious invasive problem thoughout the region. Very tough plant that spreads prolifically by self-seeding.